Incarcerated PTI Founder Imran Khan’s sons met with United States President Donald Trump’s key aide Richard Grenell on Tuesday as they kicked off a campaign calling for their father’s release from prison.

Imran’s sons — Sulaiman Khan, 28, and Kasim Khan, 26 — called attention to their father’s incarceration for the first time publicly in May. Earlier this month, Imran’s sister Aleema Khan said Sulaiman and Kasim will go to the US before coming to Pakistan as part of a movement calling for the ex-premier’s release.

Imran, imprisoned since August 2023, is serving a sentence at the Adiala Jail in a £190 million corruption case and also faces pending trials under the Anti-Terrorism Act related to the protests of May 9, 2023.

Grenell, US special presidential envoy for special missions — known for publicly calling for Imran’s release — posted on X that he had met with Sulaiman and Kasim in California, urging them to “stay strong”.

“There are millions of people around the world who are sick of political prosecutions. You are not alone.”

Imran’s sons also met with Dr Asif Mahmood, a Pakistani American physician who has been playing a key role in the PTI’s campaign to win over Americans.

Dr Mahmood, vice chairman of the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), shared a picture showing he also met with Grenell, along with the ex-premier’s sons.

“Immense pride for [Kasim] and Sulaiman Khan for their bravery in fighting for their father, former prime minister Imran Khan’s freedom,” he said.

He also praised Grenell for “standing for justice and principle” and called for unity to free the PTI founder.

In December 2024, after Trump won the presidential elections, Grenell had made a series of statements and tweets over a few weeks, including a viral “Free Imran Khan!” post on X.

He sharply criticised the policies of ex-president Joe Biden’s administration toward Pakistan, particularly its handling of the country’s missile programme and Imran’s imprisonment. Subsequently, Pakistan’s political and diplomatic machinery in the US had also ramped up efforts to engage with the new Congress.

“Getting the ear and voice of Richard Grenell, a key Trump insider, was crucial,” Shuja Nawaz, a distinguished fellow at the Atlantic Council, had said in January.

Last week, during a congressional hearing on Pakistan, Republican Congressman Christopher H. Smith suggested that the US Congress may soon urge Trump’s administration to consider imposing sanctions on countries that suppress religious freedom and violate human rights.

Speakers at the hearing, also attended by PTI’s Zulfi Bukhari, discussed the rights situation in Pakistan. Democratic Congressman James McGovern stressed the need to engage and talk “about political prisoners, the future of Imran Khan … but also how you do it”.

Notably, there have been increased positive engagements between Washington and Islamabad, with an unprecedented meeting between Trump and Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir in June and the US hailing the country as a “phenomenal partner” in counterterrorism.

Although the government has not officially commented on the matter of Imran’s son, Minister of State for Interior Tallal Chaudhry said today while speaking on Geo News show ‘Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Kay Sath’ that the meeting would “practically have no result” even though it might net symbolic gains for the party.

He questioned what, if any, role Imran’s sons would be able to play, adding that they were welcome to visit Pakistan and there would be no obstacle for them and visas would be issued “in less than 24 hours”, provided they stayed within the law.

Previously, Minister of State for Law and Justice Barrister Aqeel Malik had told Dawn.com that Article 16 of the Constitution, which grants the right to gather, was applicable to citizens and foreigners are not allowed to assemble in Pakistan.

Malik also said that the two brothers could not legally participate in local political activity as they were British nationals, and that if they “violate the visa conditions, the visa can be cancelled”.

There were conflicting statements from PML-N leaders as well on whether the duo would be allowed entry into Pakistan, with Senator Irfan Siddiqui saying they should be allowed to come and “carry out their activities”, but within the limitations of the law.